The Executioner
by ghostwriterlondon13
Summary: No one asked him his opinion when it came to his occupation. Now it is a series of oneshots!
1. Chapter 1: The Excecutioner

**Well this is a oneshot since I have been too ADHD and too busy to attempt to continue or start any multiple chapter stories...so here you have it**

No one asked him his opinion when it came to his occupation. His wife was careful to avoid the subject and his children knew better than to would just pull on his cloak and put the mask over his face and walk out the door before dawn. He didn't want his children to see the fearsome bloodstained guise he took up in order to feed them all.

He was the executioner, faceless and feared. Even before the purge he would carry out the kings orders, for he knew best of all, that the king's word was law.

The executioner walked through the lower town, watching the criminals scurry past, watching sorcerers perform magic under the cover of night. He refused to report them, for he wasn't going to be the man who sentenced them, instead he was the one to seal their fates when they come. He entered the castle and took his post next in the courtyard.

Thirteen sorcerers would die today, all by his hand. Yet he didn't think about it. He thought about his son, who would reach ten years today, and his daughters, one of which would marry soon. How many of these people had sons and daughters just like that? If he were in their place, he would never see Marit's wedding day. Suddenly a cloaked figure ran out of the mist. Her hood fell, revealing his daughter's face.

"Lena!" He exclaimed pulling his mask off "What are you doing here?"

"You forgot your gloves." Her small delicate hands passed the black leather gloves to him.

"You should go, daughter." He whispered under his breath.

"Yes Father." She walked away, but instead of going back to the lower town she entered the castle.

The executioner sighed, putting his mask on again, and slipping on the strange. She was most likely going to watch. It could be her fate someday. For some reason she wanted to see what would happen if she was ever caught.

Many call the executioner many names. They bounce off quite harmlessly most of the time. However if they knew what his daughter was, they would call him a hypocrite. He was sending these poor people to their deaths. It wasn't as if he could stop it, when that's all he really wanted to do. If he refused to let the axe fall, he would die and his family would be in poverty. The deaths would continue.

That's what he told himself through Uther's speech. With a cue from Uther the executioner raised the axe. Then he forced it down.

**I might make this a series of oneshots featuring original characters that you know have to exist in the world of Merlin somewhere:D read and review!**


	2. Chapter 2: Sally's Doll

**Now A series of oneshots! Thank you Niphrehdil for your review! It inspired me to write another one that I hope will be decent. I'm still having trouble with computer access and I will try to update a sword a wand and germX soon.**

**A fool thinks himself to be wise but a wise man knows himself to be a fool- William Shakspeare. (honestly has nothing to do with the story)**

My sister and I have always been taught to fear the pyre and the executioner's stage since birth. Once my parents brought us to an execution on purpose, to scare us into never using our magic in public. However in secret was a different story. We would sit in the lap of Father as Mother whispered spells and had us repeat them until we had them down. The shutters would be shut as we honed our powers at night.

We were careful. Oh so careful. But it wasn't enough.

Father always told us if guards were to tear through our cottage, that we should remain calm and act surprised. We were to question what they were doing and attempt to be polite. If that failed we should run and meet outside of Camelot. I always had nightmares about it. We weren't powerful enough to escape if needed. That scared me the most.

The guards tore open the door just like in my dreams. Mother stood up, looking truly shocked "What is the meaning of this?" She demanded, the mending she was working on still in her hand.

"We have a warrent for your arrest." One guard said, roughing grabbing my arm.

I shouted as he tugged me along, his iron grip was painful.

I scanned the room looking for escape, wishing for it. Yet there was nothing I could do. My little sister Sally was literally slung over another guard's soldier and my mother found herself being dragged along by her neck.

Why were they so cruel to us? We weren't even convicted yet. Even as I thought this I bitterly laughed out loud, earning a strange look from my sister as we were forced up the road. She still clinged to her little rag doll throughout the ordeal, crying.

We were dragged into the great hall to stand before King Uther. I had only seen him one time before in person. He was a scary and proud looking man with a scar that went through the middle of his forehead. Beside him stood Prince Arthur. He looked like a younger perhaps more handsome version of Uther, however his face was kinder. He seemed truly concerned as me and my sister were dumped on the floor, followed by my mother.

"Anna Spinster and Connor and Sally, children of Anna, you have been accused of sorcery." Uther's voice was cold and his expression was hardened. I never thought someone who never met me could hate me so. "Do you deny these charges?"

Mother's voice was shaking as she replied "W-we are a good, hard workin family my liege, we w-would never d-do such a dark art, we have no cause to"

Sally was crying, burying her face into the doll. The Prince looked sympathetic, but Uther would have none of it.

"Someone shut that child up!"

Before any guard made a move to her I hugged her "Stop crying Sal we cannot anger him"

"I-I don't care!" She cried, burying her head into my shoulder.

"Surely these people cannot be sorcers?" Arthur reasoned with his father "No one could teach much to a girl that young and the person who reported them wasn't in the best of health."

I decided right then and there that I liked the Prince. Sadly his reasoning was lost on his father.

We were lead to the pyre. The executioner stood motionless beside it. He scared me more than the king. Somehow the black hood that covered his face made him seem unhuman and stoic. He looked like a monster that would hide in the shadows. I proceeded to close my eyes listening to the gasps of horror as we walked by. Sally would be the youngest person accused of sorcery and executed for the first time in twenty years. She's barely five.

I myself got similar sympathy being only nine. Mother weeped as we were lead upon the stage and tied to our own individual stakes.

"I love you Sally, I love you Connor." She cried tearfully.

"I love you too." We both replied.

The flames swept up, making me sweat from the heat, burning through my clothes and licking my skin. I screamed along with my family. However my thoughts were on Father, who would return home to find his family dead. Then they turned to the pure agony I felt up to the end.

I watched the executioner bend down and pick up Sally's doll. It was damaged from the flames but still in one piece. He put it in his pocket and then all I saw was darkness.

**How did I do? Please review! Hey that kind of rhymed... Not every oneshot will be depressing, I promise!**


	3. Chapter 3: the mad old woman

**Okay well here's my attempt at a slightly more lighthearted oneshot. No one dies so that's a bonus. I'm still having trouble stealing time on my brother's computer, and this came to me randomly, I'm still in the process of writing the next chapter in A sword A wand and GermX, even though that's not a particularly popular story...well enjoy! **

**Oh I forgot to state the obvious in previous chapters. I do not own Merlin, if I did I would be wealthy and wouldn't have the time to write fanfiction!**

An elderly woman stood in her humble hovel, weaving with her gnarled hands and muttering darkly beneath her breath. The hovel was completely dark except for the block of sunshine coming in through the open window. She carefully wove on her drop weight loom facing away from the bustling near chaos that went on outside.

Suddenly a small wooden ball flew threw the window, hitting the small of her back. The old woman swung around grabbing her cane and walked to the door faster than one would think possible. She looked around frantically for the culprit, her eyes landing on a couple of particularly sheepish looking boys.

"YOU TWO!" The old woman rasped, swinging her cane at the boys.

They took off running and the woman sprinted in pursuit. Many shopkeepers stalled their daily business to watch the comical event. The old woman was shouting unintelligibly and waving her walking stick around, and was surprisingly gaining on the two boys. The boys leaped over goods, disrupting chickens who flew everywhere and overturning carts.

The executioner was walking home for the day when the old woman ran straight into him, almost knocking him over. He grabbed her and proceeded to sling her over his shoulder and continued the walk home.

"No you will put me down this instant!" The old woman shrieked. "NO! They're getting away they're getting away!"

"Mother we're going home." The executioner seemed to be oblivious of the small frail hands punching his back.

"But they-"

"No"

"But they tried to-"

"Mother calm down"

"I will not calm down!" She cried out to the world.

No one looked up from their work anymore. "Mother this is the third time this week, we are going home.

She sighed overdramatically "You are going to be the death of your poor old mother" She whined.

"Where's Lena? She was supposed to be watching you." The executioner inquired walking through the door.

"Something about a boy in the stocks." The old woman sighed "Now put me down!"

The executioner dumped his mother on the pallet. and she sprawled out "That was quite exhilerating" She muttered, then grew louder "Where did you get that doll?"

The exceutioner shrugged before putting it on the shelf next to the three legal books they owned "Found it"


	4. Chapter 4: the blind man

**I'M BACK! So sorry I haven't been on in so long. Time got away from me, I finally got a new laptop, moved house, and I've started school once again so basically my life has been a little too busy for fanfiction. Admittedly now I should be working on my homework, but procrastination is a powerful thing. This won't be very long, but I'm trying to get back into the swing of things.**

**Definition of hurdy gurdy- a medieval stringed instrument played by turning a wheel and pressing on keys to change the notes**

**The blind man's hurdy gurdy**

There weren't many ways a blind man could make a living in Camelot. Eyesight is crucial to almost any job involving skills or labor. Therefore, as a beggar with no family he roamed the streets with a strange instrument in his hand.

The man sat down at a corner, right outside the castle's inner gates, where he hoped a nobleman would take pity on him. It sounded like an execution was going on down by the pyre and the gallows, however, he ignored it, opting to play his unusual instrument.

He turned the wheel and pressed the buttons, emitting a low sound that couldn't seem to decide whether it wanted to sound like a fiddle or bagpipes. With the wheel turning at a constant rate, he began to play a lively tune by hitting the keys with his easy hands.

What he couldn't see was the people stopping to listen, and he could hear the spare coin being dropped in his cap.

"Sing!" He heard someone cry and he did so.

The blind man had a clear, actually quite good voice that reached far and wide. The coins dropping could be enough for bread, or possibly a blanket, he knew.

He felt someone touch his face with their hand. It was obviously a young woman's hand by the smoothness of it's touch "Hello." She said over the music.

He stopped abruptly, the hurdy gurdy making an unpleasant screech before stopping "Hello." He replied quietly.

"Would you care to come to our cottage for dinner and a place to stay?" She asked kindly taking his hand and lifting him to his feet "We live only down the road, and we adore music."

The blind man nodded, happy with the thought of food. He tucked his instrument under his arm and took the cap with the free hand. He allowed himself to be led down the road to a cottage full of warm smells.

"Lena who is this?" A man's voice came out.

"He was the one playing music. I went out there and he looked very thin." The girl, who the blind man learned was Lena told him.

"Very well, help him to the table."

That voice. Where had the blind man heard that voice before? The man heard the executioner sigh. Suddenly the blind man's plate was full of wheat mash with little bits of meat throughout and a spoon was pressed into his hand. The identity of the voice didn't seem to matter so much anymore.

**It's very short and a bit of a filler…then again nearly all one shots are fillers.:D hopefully I'll get back into writing soon enough. Please review and be as horrid as you like (well as long as you prove a point, anyway.) Oh and for the Americans, HAPPY THANKSGIVING! You probably could have guessed that this was in the spirit of the holiday, giving a helpless man some food and all. But I hope you enjoyed it. A little bit of niceness before I go on to my next one.**


	5. Chapter 5: A proud guard

**Sorry I haven't updated in so long…there was a bear and it tried to nope, I have an actual excuse this time. I call it Super Mega Writer's Block: fanfiction edition, plus Super Mega Writer's Inspiration: in original fiction. At this rate I'll be able to start begging publishers to accept my book by the end of the summer. I must explain that usually my original works are a little more high quality than my fanfiction, which is usually updated in less than thirty minutes, so please don't be too disbelieving of my optimism here. I do not own Merlin!**

**A proud guard**

As a royal palace guard, Mason took his duty very seriously. In his eyes, the job must be treated with the upmost respect and care. It was known among Camelot after all, that he was guarding the very government of their nation. With this knowledge, he carried his spear proudly and demanded the proper authority from all who passed.

This was precisely why he was fired within a day.

How was he supposed to know that demanding a strip search of a pregnant woman was considered highly inappropriate? For all he knew, she wasn't actually pregnant and was possibly stashing potions in that lump of hers.

How was he supposed to know that asking the court physician for proof of identity was unnecessary? He could have been a shape shifter or he could have been possessed. Yes that's it! He was possessed by the ghost of an evil sorcerer hell bent on destroying the world!

How in the world was he supposed to know that when you see the Prince's personal manservant performing magic right in front of you, that you were just supposed to pretend it never happened? Apparently, the thought of Merlin having magic was so laughable, that the guards, who have reported it, have swiftly been sent to the bedlam house. Why wasn't any of this information ever disclosed to him?

He figured out that a guard was supposed to ignore nearly any happenings that occur or else they will be fired, or worse, killed in the crossfire. It was so much better not to get involved. As he sat in the tavern, mulling this over, he came to realize something. There wasn't much use for a guard like him in the kingdom.

A girl walked up to him, sitting down next to him "Ello Mason."

"Lena." He nodded to her dully.

"Let me think, you got yourself dismissed."

"Yep."

She smiled "Next time, just do nothing. After all, observant minor characters aren't allowed in Camelot."

A man called from outside "Lena what are you doing?"

"Oh I got to go! Maybe you should go into masonry Mason!"

**Short and light. It's my spring holiday here, so hopefully I can get even more up! Hurray!**


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